~SIN 13~
"Benjamin Black! Get yourself down here right this minute! And don't forget to brush your teeth!"
Bella's nerves are jangled, and she wonders at the wisdom of this plan: her maiden voyage on Edward's sailboat, with her kids—who are about to meet Edward for the first time this morning. She plucks two plastic cups from the pantry and secures them over the bottle of Pinot Grigio, stuffing a juice box for each kid in the opposite compartment of the picnic basket.
"Did you pack the pretzels?" she asks Angela.
"Yep. And the chocolate chip cookies we made last night, and all the samwidges."
"Good girl. How about making one more trip to the bathroom? No potty on the boat."
"Okay, Mommy."
"Benj—! Ugh, never mind," Bella mutters, starting up the stairs to see what is taking her son so blasted long to pull on a bathing suit and a pair of flip flops.
Bella gasps as she pushes open the door to her son's bedroom to find him buried under the covers. "What are you doing? Edward will be here in..." she checks her watch and tries not to sound hysterical, "five minutes!"
"Not going!" a petulant voice comes from under the blankets.
Bella balls her fists, takes a deep, cleansing breath, then releases it, shaking out her fingers. Edward will wait if need be. She takes the three steps to Ben's bed, sits gingerly, and smoothes her hand over the lump of boy and blankets.
"Benny, talk to me."
He remains still, and Bella looks to the ceiling for wisdom and patience. There's a rustling followed by the appearance of two miniature hands, a wild tangle of static-laced black hair, two narrowed eyes, and one angry little frown. "Not. Going."
Bella scoots closer and pushes the hair off his forehead. Ben's always been a tactile kid, and Bella takes full advantage by scratching her fingernails through his hair, soothing the savage away until she finds her little boy again.
"What's going on in there, huh?"
"Daddy says Edward is the man who took him away from us."
"Daddy is..." Daddy's a dirtbag, sabotaging his own son's heart out of pettiness and jealousy. Bella clenches her teeth and swallows the bile at the back of her throat, "...not right about that, Benjamin."
"Then how come we only get to see Daddy once in a while?" The raw pain shreds her, and though she'd love to throw Jake under the bus as he's clearly done to Edward, Bella won't. Because rotten piece of shit that he is, Jake is still her children's father, and somehow he's needed if these kids are going to come out of this divorce intact.
"Sweetie, Daddy loves you...you know that. But taking care of other people isn't what he's good at..." that would be carousing and talking out of his ass and looking out for number one, "and you and your sister deserve the very best possible taking care of."
She holds her breath, hoping her roundabout answer will satisfy him.
"That's you, right?" he whispers.
"Mmhmm."
"What happens if you decide you like Edward more than us?"
"Lemme ask you a question, Benny. How many sons do I have in this world?"
"One?"
"Yup. You think I'm ever gonna let anyone come between us?"
"I guess not," he says, then thinks quietly for a minute. "So whatta you need Edward for?"
She needs Edward. Bella feels the warm flush that thoughts of Edward always bring on now. She stopped counting their dates about a month ago when Edward started "popping over" at lunchtime and randomly bringing her coffee in the morning, but she doesn't need a number to know that she's never been happier or more in love.
She answers her son carefully, appealing to his powerful sense of fairness. "You know how you like to play soccer with your buddies? It's the same way for grownups."
"But you have Auntie Alice!"
And she is so NOT Edward.
"Ben, you remember how your tummy felt all fluttery when you liked that little brown-haired girl at school?"
His cheeks turn red, and he pulls the covers halfway up his face. Bella ruffles his hair. "That's what it's like for me with Edward. Aunt Alice is great, but she's not a boy."
"Okay, okay," he surrenders, and Bella stifles her smile.
"I know Edward is really eager to meet you. What do you say you grab your swim trunks and get downstairs so we can all enjoy a nice day out on the water?"
Ben nods, and Bella stands up to leave. "Mom?" He grabs her hand, and Bella turns back around.
"Yeah, honey?"
"Are you sure you know how to swim?"
Poor little guy looks panicked that he might lose her. "Yep. I passed my Red Cross Intermediate test last week. Besides, Edward will be right there if anything happens, and he'll take good care of all of us."
She debates telling Ben how Edward pulled Emmett from the depths of the lake and resuscitated him when they partied a bit too hard senior year. That's a story she'll save for Edward to share when he's ready.
Bella's cell phone vibrates in her hand, and she gives Ben a peck on the forehead. "He's here. I'm gonna go downstairs and let him in. You come down when you're ready, okay?"
Ben takes a brave breath. "Okay."
Angela is balanced precariously on the back of the sofa, her nose pressed up against the window. "He's here, Mommy!"
"I know."
"He has a big smile."
"Yep, he does."
"What's he carrying? Is that for us?"
"I dunno, Peaches. Maybe we should open the door and find out."
Angela hops to the floor and pushes in front of Bella as the heavy door is opened. Bella's heart leaps like it always does when Edward smiles at her and then he immediately takes in Angela. He crouches in front of her and says, "Why, hello there. You must be Benjamin."
Angela's giggles ripple through the morning sky. "No, silly! I'm Angela!"
"Oh, really? Gee whiz, these things must be really dirty!" Edward pulls off his sunglasses and makes a show of cleaning them before looking back at Angela. "Oh my gosh, you're right! You're a girl! And a really, really pretty one, too! Just like your mom told me. I'm Edward. It is so nice to meet you, Angela."
Edward extends his hand to shake grown-up style, and Angela places her tiny hand inside his. Bella's heart nearly explodes as Edward jiggles her arm like a wet noodle and Angela's face lights up with more giggles.
"Mommy, he's so silly!"
"He is," she agrees, as their eyes meet over Angela's head. It's torture not kissing him, but they've agreed to keep the PDA to a minimum around the kids.
"If you're Angela, then this must be for you!" Edward presents her with a hot pink gift bag with sparkly silver curling ribbon spilling over the sides.
"Thank you!" she exclaims, running off to the couch to tear into her present.
Edward stands and offers the same hand to Bella, and when she places her hand in his, she feels that familiar zing that always comes with touching him. "Hello, Bella. Are you ready to meet X-Ta-Sea?"
"Um...excuse me?" Bella's looks pointedly at her daughter, but Angela is lost in a sea of tissue paper and stickers.
Edward clucks his tongue and shakes his head. "My boat, Bella." He tickles her palm with his fingertips before letting her go.
Bella feels Ben lurking at her back, and Edward peers around her body. She wishes she'd had the chance to give Edward a heads-up that he has a tough customer on his hands.
"Hello there," Edward greets him, and Bella takes a step to the side, slipping her arm around Ben's shoulders and drawing him forward.
"Hi."
"Would you, by any chance, be Ben?"
"Yes."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Edward."
"Hi." Ben shakes the offered hand, and suddenly Edward's eyebrows squish together, and he reaches behind Ben's ear, pulling back a quarter in his hand.
"What the heck was this doing behind your ear?"
"Huh? I don't know."
"Oh my gosh...I think there's another one back there."
Ben watches in awe as Edward "finds" another quarter.
"How'd you do that?"
Edward shrugs. "Magic, I guess."
"Wow! Can you teach me that?"
"Hmmm, I'm not sure. A magician only reveals his tricks to good friends." Edward crosses his arms and gives Ben a good, long stare. Ben pulls away from his mother's side and stands on his own, taller.
"You know what?" Edward starts, "I have a feeling you and I are going to become very good friends."
Ben's face lights up. "So you'll teach me?"
Edward and Bella share a silent moment of victory before Bella says, "Perfect. I'll go finish packing the picnic basket."
A/N: Many of you asked or worried about Jake, especially after the last chapter . Here it is-he knows about them, has tried to poison the kids, and Bella and Edward addressed the issue head on with Ben. Judge . . . 2, Jake . . . 0!
So, dear sweet readers, only one more chapter left in this little saga. Thank you all for your kind words and insightful reviews. I really appreciate your love for these characters. xoxo ~BOH